{"id":398264,"date":"2026-07-14T19:28:10","date_gmt":"2026-07-14T19:28:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/398264\/"},"modified":"2026-07-14T19:28:10","modified_gmt":"2026-07-14T19:28:10","slug":"the-best-restaurants-in-los-angeles-right-now-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/398264\/","title":{"rendered":"The Best Restaurants in Los Angeles Right Now"},"content":{"rendered":"

Los Angeles has always had one of the most compelling \u2014 and most underestimated \u2014 restaurant scenes in the world. In 2026, it is impossible to underestimate. Between the city\u2019s most recent Michelin Guide<\/a> dropping new stars and a run of high-profile openings that has raised the bar across every neighborhood, there has never been a better moment to have a reservation in LA. These are the restaurants worth having.<\/p>\n

\"ThePhoto Credit: Courtesy of Baldi Beverly Hills<\/p>\n

Somni, West Hollywood<\/p>\n

The most famous restaurant in Los Angeles right now is not a debate. Somni \u2014 Chef Aitor Zabala\u2019s 14-seat counter in West Hollywood \u2014 earned three Michelin stars in June 2025, just seven months after reopening in December 2024, making it the first restaurant in LA County to hold that distinction. The El Bulli alumnus leads a meticulously choreographed multi-course tasting that weaves Basque and Catalan culinary traditions through California\u2019s finest ingredients across an evening of extraordinary precision and creativity. Fourteen seats. One of the best restaurants in America. Reserve as far in advance as the system allows.<\/p>\n

n\/naka, Palms, Los Angeles<\/p>\n

Chef Niki Nakayama\u2019s modern kaiseki experience in the Palms neighborhood is the most personal fine dining experience in Los Angeles \u2014 a Michelin-starred tasting that draws on seafood, meat, and produce sourced across Japan and California, woven together with the kind of quiet artistry that has made n\/naka one of the city\u2019s most beloved reservations for over a decade. The one dish that never leaves the menu: al dente spaghetti with abalone, pickled cod roe, and black truffle. The kind of restaurant that changes how you think about what a meal can be.<\/p>\n

Spago Beverly Hills, Beverly Hills<\/p>\n

Wolfgang Puck\u2019s two-Michelin-star flagship remains the definitive Beverly Hills dining institution \u2014 and one of the most enduring restaurants in American culinary history. Executive Chef Ari Rosenson shapes seasonal menus around the best of California\u2019s produce alongside Puck\u2019s legendary sensibility: smoked salmon pizza, grilled veal chop, floor-to-ceiling windows, an outdoor patio lit at night with the particular warmth that Spago has always understood. The standard for California fine dining, set in 1982 and never lowered.<\/p>\n

Baldi, Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills<\/p>\n

The Baldi family \u2014 responsible for Giorgio Baldi in Santa Monica and e.Baldi in Beverly Hills, two of the most celeb-beloved Italian restaurants in the city \u2014 opened their latest expression at the Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills in February 2026. Tuscan steakhouse in concept, the 180-seat restaurant with central bar, semi-enclosed outdoor terrace, and private dining room centers on prime and Wagyu cuts cooked over open flame, alongside house-made pastas perfected across three decades of family cooking. The most anticipated Beverly Hills opening of the year \u2014 and it delivered.<\/p>\n

SUSHISAMBA, West Hollywood<\/p>\n

The internationally acclaimed Japanese-Brazilian-Peruvian concept that spent a decade abroad returned to the U.S. on March 16, 2026, atop 639 N. La Peer Drive in West Hollywood \u2014 and the 11,000-square-foot rooftop with a retractable roof, private dining room with its own elevator, and views of the Hollywood Hills is exactly the arrival the city had been waiting for. Chefs Maxwell Terheggen and John Um run a kitchen fusing sushi, sashimi, and robata-grilled dishes, including a Samba LA roll with A5 wagyu and soft-shell crab tempura developed specifically for this location. One of the most visually and culinarily spectacular new restaurants in LA right now.<\/p>\n

Bad Roman, Beverly Hills<\/p>\n

Quality Branded\u2019s bold Italian concept \u2014 which made its name at Columbus Circle in New York in 2022 \u2014 arrived in Beverly Hills in 2026, taking over the former Palm Restaurant space at 267 N. Canon Drive. Designed by Brooklyn-based GRT Architects, the 3,570-square-foot room delivers the same maximalist Italian energy the New York original is known for: rich materials, playful design, and a menu built for a long, indulgent evening. The group\u2019s first California venture, and already one of the most talked-about tables in Beverly Hills.<\/p>\n

M\u00e9lisse, Santa Monica<\/p>\n

One of Los Angeles\u2019s most serious fine-dining addresses, M\u00e9lisse holds two Michelin stars and delivers one of the city\u2019s most meticulously constructed tasting menus for $399 per person. Luxurious, detail-obsessed dishes \u2014 prawn and white asparagus cappuccino, quail ragout \u2014 executed with the kind of consistency that two-star restaurants earn and then spend years defending. The gold standard for Santa Monica fine dining.<\/p>\n

Vespertine, Culver City<\/p>\n

Jordan Kahn\u2019s two-Michelin-star experience inside a wavy obelisk in Culver City remains one of the most singular restaurant experiences in any American city. Part science fiction, part fine dining \u2014 a progression of extraordinary, otherworldly dishes in a space that was designed as much for atmosphere as for eating. Vespertine is not for every mood, but for the right one, it is unforgettable.<\/p>\n

Kato, Los Angeles<\/p>\n

Kato jumped to two Michelin stars in the 2026 guide \u2014 a recognition of Chef Jon Yao\u2019s extraordinary tasting menu that draws on Taiwanese and Japanese culinary traditions, sourced through California\u2019s best producers. The omakase-style progression is personal, deeply considered, and unlike anything else operating in the city. One of the most compelling restaurants to emerge from the LA dining scene in years.<\/p>\n

Providence, Hollywood<\/p>\n

Three Michelin stars. One of the longest-running fine dining institutions in Los Angeles. Chef Michael Cimarusti\u2019s seafood-focused tasting menu at Providence has held its position at the top of the city\u2019s restaurant hierarchy for nearly two decades, sourcing the finest domestic and international seafood and treating each course as a precise expression of what the ocean and California\u2019s waters can produce. The kind of restaurant that reminds you why fine dining exists.<\/p>\n

Giorgio Baldi, Santa Monica<\/p>\n

Before there was Baldi at the Waldorf, there was Giorgio Baldi \u2014 the 36-year-old Santa Monica institution that has been the most reliably excellent Italian restaurant in Los Angeles for three and a half decades. The hand-rolled pastas, the branzino, the tableside presentations, the room full of faces you recognize from film and television: Giorgio Baldi operates entirely on its own terms and has never needed to announce itself. A reservation here is still one of the most coveted in the city.<\/p>\n

Hayato, Downtown Los Angeles<\/p>\n

Chef Hayato Kojima\u2019s kaiseki-inspired tasting menu earned its first Michelin star in 2026 \u2014 a formal recognition of what the city\u2019s most devoted diners have known for years. The elegant, precise progression moves far beyond pristine fish to showcase the full breadth of Japanese cuisine through California\u2019s seasonal ingredients. Intimate, considered, and now officially one of the most important Japanese fine dining experiences on the West Coast.<\/p>\n

The best experiences are the ones you can\u2019t book online. Unlock bespoke itineraries, private aviation, and VIP access at 500+ properties across 120+ countries through Haute Black \u2014 the exclusive platform built from 20 years of Haute Living\u2019s extensive network. Become a Haute Black<\/a> member today: [email\u00a0protected]<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Los Angeles has always had one of the most compelling \u2014 and most underestimated \u2014 restaurant scenes in…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":398265,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[159948,159949,159950,159951,159952,159953,159954,159955,159956,16327,48,159957,52,51,47,50,49,159958,159959,159960,159961,159962,159963,159964,56920,159965,159966,159967,159968,159969],"class_list":["post-398264","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-los-angeles","tag-bad-roman-beverly-hills","tag-baldi-waldorf-astoria","tag-baldi-waldorf-astoria-beverly-hills","tag-best-la-restaurants","tag-best-luxury-restaurants-la-2026","tag-best-restaurants-in-los-angeles","tag-best-restaurants-los-angeles","tag-giorgio-baldi","tag-hayato","tag-kato","tag-la","tag-la-fine-dining-2026","tag-la-headlines","tag-la-news","tag-los-angeles","tag-los-angeles-headlines","tag-los-angeles-news","tag-luxury-dining-la","tag-melisse","tag-michelin-star-restaurants-la","tag-n-naka","tag-n-naka-los-angeles","tag-new-restaurants-los-angeles-2025-2026","tag-new-restaurants-los-angeles-2026","tag-providence","tag-somni-west-hollywood","tag-spago-beverly-hills","tag-sushisamba-west-hollywood","tag-vespertine","tag-where-to-eat-los-angeles"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/398264","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=398264"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/398264\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/398265"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=398264"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=398264"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=398264"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}